How It's Made: Our Stanton Umbrella

It’s always a long process when we custom design a product, but our Stanton umbrella was a special case.

It’s always a long process when we custom design a product, but our Stanton umbrella was a special case.

After searching for the perfect umbrella, we realized that while there were good options out there, if we wanted one with the right blend of style, compactness, affordability, and dependability, we’d have to make it ourselves.

It took us a year and a half and six different factories to fine-tune all of the right details. Here’s the play-by-play:

Our muse

This was our original inspiration: a solid build with a wood handle, but the colors were too dark and one-note.

The first sample arrives

This was our first sample. We knew that we wanted a plaid pattern with a contrasting inner, creating a dual canopy with complementing hues, but this take was way too bright and the quality wasn’t up to our standards.
We gave it a darker plaid canopy, but the quality was still shaky and the underside was too bright.

A darker, more refined plaid

We kept up our “If you want something done right, do it yourself” attitude and started to design our own plaid pattern. Even with this, though, the greens and blues were too bright. Plus, the handle didn’t feel comfortable enough in our hands, and the button to spring the umbrella open wasn’t smooth enough.

Switching up the size

The full-sized options we were pursuing had promise, but we decided that a compact, expandable version would be better for an on-the-go guy. That way, you can keep it in your backpack or briefcase when you don’t need it.

Updating the compact design

The compact umbrella got an updated version of our dual-canopy design, but the blues were still too bright. The button was also still too hard to press, and the opening mechanics weren’t as smooth and sturdy as we wanted.

The finished product

Finally: we got things right. The colors were just so, the button operation was smooth, and the wood on the handle was nicer quality with a visible grain to it. We also added an antique brass plate to the handle for a touch of class.